The North Quarter space where Downtown Credo poured coffee served with a healthy dose of social activism will soon see a shop pouring coffee served with a not-so-healthy dose of deep-fried delights.
Beignets & Brew, an expansionist Miramar Beach, FL-based chain specializing in the hot powdered-sugar-covered dough pillows, opens next month on the ground floor of The Nora at 885 N. Orange Avenue (map) serving traditional and specialty beignets like Cinna-Swirl, S’More and Cocoa-Nut Caramel along with a variety of sauces in such flavors as buttercream, blueberry and chocolate.
Smoothies, power fizzies and, of course, a host of coffees will also be poured, including the beignet’s beverage-of-choice, café au lait.
“We look forward to creating a welcoming environment where locals can gather, connect and savor the simple pleasures of life together,” the Beignets & Brew brass said in a statement. The company plans on hiring 10-15 employees to staff the cafe.
The Louisiana-style fast food chain will open its new Winter Park outpost at 100 S. Semoran Blvd.
Beloved chicken joint Raising Cane’s expands its Orlando-area reach this week with a long awaited new location.
The Louisiana-style fast food chain will open its new Winter Park outpost at 100 S. Semoran Blvd. on Thursday, Sept. 12.
The restaurant will be Raising Cane’s fourth Central Florida location, all of which opened within the past year. Nearby locations include Lake Nona, Kissimmee and the Dr. Phillips area.
To celebrate, the restaurant will host a grand opening event with entertainment and giveaways. A ribbon-cutting ceremony with Winter Park Chamber of Commerce and local leaders kicks things off at 9 a.m. There will also be an appearance by Orlando City SC mascot Kingston, a check presentation to Aloma Elementary school and a DJ supplying live entertainment.
The first 100 customers who purchase a combo will receive a commemorative hat and Box Combo card, and the first 100 teachers who show school ID will receive a free “swag bag.”
Attendees can also expect a “Lucky 20” drawing, which will award 20 customers (13 and older) free Raising Cane’s for a year. Entries will be accepted from 8 to 9 a.m.
Coast to Coast Pizza Company opens in Ocoee this month
Coast to Coast Pizza Company, firing up NY-style pizza with a Florida Keys vibe, opens Aug. 5 at 352 Moore Road in Ocoee. The pizza joint has locations in Marathon and Fort Lauderdale with all three employing the New York WaterMaker filtration system. C2C’s pizzaiolos are trained at the Pacific Northwest School of Pizza which is accredited by the esteemed Scuola Italiana Pizzaioli in Parma, Italy.
Yao’s, the contemporary Shanghainese concept from siblings George, Eddie and Diane Yiu, and Chris Chen and Phil Nguyen of Viet-Nomz, has opened in the old Bento Asian Kitchen space at 15 Alafaya Woods Blvd. in Oviedo. Cocktails are also served.
Toshka Syrian Street Food, a mobile outfit specializing in toshka (lavash stuffed with ground lamb and cheese that’s grilled and served with garlic cream) has set up behind the Smoke Shop at 1520 S. U.S. Highway 17-92 facing Lake Fairy. Toshka also serves shawarma, falafel and sujuk sandwiches. Follow them @toshka_syrianstreetfood.
Talkin’ Tacos, the all-halal Mexican taqueria out of South Florida, will open Friday, Aug. 2 at 6 p.m. in the old Pita Mediterranean Street Food space at 400 N. Orlando Ave. in Maitland. The first 100 customers will receive a free order of birria tacos. Talkin’ Tacos also has a location in SoDo at 3123 S. Orange Ave.
Latin restaurant chain Lechonera has opened an outpost at 1370 E. Altamonte Drive in Altamonte Springs.
Sakura Ramen, serving seven different types of ramen as well as stir-fry noodles and rice dishes, has opened at 4848 S. Apopka-Vineland Road in Windermere.
Kellin’s Honduras & Mexican Restaurant has opened at 711 N. Pine Hills Road in the old Marco’s Crab Shack building at the intersection of Colonial Drive.
Nearby, Walala Asian Noodle House, specializing in Lanzhou- style hand-pulled noodles, has opened at 5062 W. Colonial Drive. Hunan rice noodles, hor fun (flat rice noodles) and ramen noodles are also offered.
Graffiti Junktion has closed its Thornton Park location after serving the community for more than 15 years.
Meet a bunny, enter a raffle and drink some wine when Orlando Rabbit Care & Adoptions hosts Goditi Conigli e Vino (translation: Enjoy Rabbits and Wine) Aug. 4 from 2:30-4:30 p.m. at Total Wine in Millenia Plaza. Cost is $35 with proceeds going to benefit the rabbit charity. Visit orlandorabbit.org/donate to register for the event.
Darden Restaurants officially owns a Mexican chain after the company purchased Chuy’s for $605 million. That’s a lot of queso.
The Restaurant Store, a one-stop-shop for restaurant supplies and equipment, has opened a 67,000-square-foot facility at 8205 S. John Young Parkway in the Sand Lake Corners South strip mall. This is the company’s 12th location.
East End Market has seen numerous concepts come and go in its 11-year existence in Audubon Park, and the food and retail hub is about to go through another transformation.
The two concepts will take over the counter space that Skyebird Juice Bar occupied since the day East End Market opened in 2013. Skyebird closed July 21 with owner Elizabeth Key citing family and other business commitments as deciding factors.
“As discussions about the future of the Skyebird space began, it became clear that we had a unique opportunity to evolve East End Market in a dynamic way,” says Ashley Coggins, Director of Operations for East End Market. “We are excited for this new chapter.”
Sonny Nguyen (L) and East End Market Director of Operations Ashley Coggins (R) in front of Skyebird Juice Bar
Named after Nguyen’s first-born daughter, Rion’s Ocean Room will launch in late-October/early November as a walk-up/takeout-only operation and use the space closest to Gideon’s Bakehouse. Construction is expected to start right away. Rion’s will offer 8-12 varieties of freshly prepared poke by the pound, half-pound and quarter-pound in spicy, shoyu and Hawaiian (sea salt and sweet onions) varieties with the option to enjoy it with plantain chips, tortilla chips or over a bed of rice.
“We are trying to break the mold of the build-a-bowl concept that most people are accustomed to,” says Nguyen. “We want to give people a true Hawaiian-style experience that will feel familiar and nostalgic to those who are from, or visited, Hawaii. No frills. Just great-tasting and great quality poke like you’d find if you were to walk into Foodland, Tamura’s or a mom-and-pop poke shop in Hawaii.”
Nguyen and Edoboy chef Tyler Inthavongsa, who’ll serve as the culinary director for Nguyen’s Small Food Group which includes Rion’s Ocean Room, Gyukatsu Rose and Edoboy, will source ahi tuna from the Marshall Islands, fatty salmon from Scotland, ono (wahoo) from the Caribbean and Gulf shrimp for Rion’s menu. Add-ons like krab salad, uni and ocean (wakame) salad will also be offered.
“We are focusing heavily on sourcing sustainably and responsibly raised fish from around the globe, as well as sourcing regionally,” Nguyen says.
Rion’s will incorporate “blue-green tiles in a striking fish scale pattern” in its design and will be separated by a half-wall from Gyukatsu Rose which will take on a sleeker look with black herringbone tiles. The 10 counter seats situated closer to Lineage Coffee Roasting will be solely devoted to guests indulging in gyukatsu, or Japanese fried beef cutlets.
Wagyu is typically used to make the comfort staple which is seasoned, coated in breadcrumbs and given a quick fry before being sliced rare and served alongside a mini stone grill for diners to sear to their liking.
A host of traditional accompaniments like dashi soup, koshihikari rice, shredded cabbage, potato salad, pickles and various dipping sauces (soy, horseradish-onion) will accompany the beef along with fresh wasabi.
Gyukatsu Rose is expected to open in late 2024 or early 2025 — “once we have operations running smoothly for the poke program,” says Nguyen.
The Imperial is aiming to return to Winter Park in October, one year after its location on Morse Boulevard closed its doors.
The American style bar and kitchen, which serves wine and beer in addition to a full lunch and dinner menu, moved out of its former Winter Park space in October 2023. Now, it will take over the Park Avenue space formerly occupied by the Parkview, a wine bar that closed in June, 136 S. Park Ave.
The Imperial first opened in the Ivanhoe District in 2010 and has later expanded to Sanford, with Winter Park its third Central Florida location.
The bar’s former Winter Park location closed last year after five years in business. Imperial owners Drew Weisner and John Washburn moved kitchen equipment and some staff to the Ivanhoe Village location while waiting to move into their new Park Avenue location.
The Imperial Winter Park is now conducting renovations on its new building.
The restaurant admitted its goal of opening in time for this year’s Autumn Art Festival may be “too ambitious,” but encouraged wine and beer enjoyers to stay tuned.
Portillo’s, a Chicago restaurant chain known for its hot dogs, will be opening a new Orlando location later this year.
The new store, set to open at the Waterford Lakes Town Center, will be the chain’s third Central Florida outpost. Current locations include one at 7715 Palm Parkway and another at 8041 W. Irlo Bronson Memorial Highway in Kissimmee.
The diner-style restaurant will be 7,800 square feet, with indoor seating for more than 190 guests and outdoor seating for about 40 guests. There will also be grab-and-go pickup spots and the company’s signature double drive-thru lanes.
It will be the seventh location in Florida that will serve classic meals of Chicago-style hot dogs, Italian beef sandwiches, chocolate cake, char-grilled burgers and more.
Portillo’s lovers or first-time guests can sign up to get updates on the progress of the restaurant and its opening.
Portillo’s last opened its second Orlando-area location in January 2023. The first Orlando area location opened in 2021.
New, plant-filled venue Garden Tiger is in soft-opening mode in Ivanhoe Village for happy hour specials and other events.
The concept, located at 1900 Alden Road, comes from the same team behind The Heavy in Winter Park, Porch Therapy and Janet’s Dry Humor. In addition to plants and furnishings, the spot also offers small bites, drinks and music. Eventually, they plan to serve brunch.
The Heavy aims to build a community that can come together either over a love for plants or even just buying a gift for a friend. Garden Tiger shares that same sentiment, and has so far hosted several nights with live music with a side of small bites and drinks.
Garden Tiger is open for happy hour on Thursdays and Fridays from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m.
Sonny Nguyen, the man behind highly lauded ramen-ya Domu and kushiyaki house Tori Tori, is launching a new restaurant collective dubbed the Small Food Group that will unveil a two-in-one restaurant concept in three phases later this year.
This fall, Nguyen will open Rion’s Ocean Room, a casual seafood counter named after his first-born daughter, specializing in poke-by-the-pound similar to the poke joints found on Oahu.
The second concept, Gyukatsu Rose, will introduce gyukatsu, or Japanese fried beef cutlets, to the masses at the end of the year. Wagyu is typically used to make the comfort staple which is seasoned, coated in breadcrumbs and given a quick fry before being sliced rare and served alongside a mini stone grill for diners to sear to their liking (see the vid below for an idea of what to expect). A host of sides like soup, rice, sliced cabbage, potato salad, pickles and various dipping sauces will accompany the beef.
The last phase, slated to launch later this year or early 2025, will see Rion’s Ocean Room offer a concise menu of “a la carte seafood snacks” encompassing “fresh ingredients with no frills” as part of the concept’s second phase.
The specific location is being kept under wraps.
As the name suggests, Small Food Group will focus on concepts with a small footprint that “deliver big on flavor and experience,” says Nguyen. Edoboy, the eight-person standing sushi bar in Mills 50, is technically the food group’s first concept.
Nguyen also runs Domu Dynasty restaurant group, which includes all three Domu locations (East End Market, Dr. Phillips and Jacksonville), Tori Tori, and Domu Chibi in Waterford Lakes in its portfolio. Be sure to follow @smallfoodgroup as well as @rionsoceanroom and @gyukatsurose for all the latest.
Locally loved Lazy Moon Pizza announced Monday an official opening date for its new outpost in Maitland.
The new restaurant — Lazy Moon’s third location — is set to open its doors Saturday, May 18, with a grand opening event starting at 11 a.m. The restaurant will be in a soft opening starting May 15.
Lazy Moon Maitland, located in the former Einstein Bros Bagel building at 441 S. Orlando Ave., Maitland, has been a years-long project for owner Tim Brown. It’ll be the latest feat for the Orlando-based brand, which celebrates its 20th year in town this year.
“Patrons to the new location can expect most of the same things they know and love about the Lazy Moon brand — murals designed by local artists, the Lazy Moon slice menu, beer, cocktails, and a laidback atmosphere,” says a press release.
A new draw at the Maitland location, however, will be the restaurant’s sizable outdoor patio that can seat up to 62 people, in addition to indoor seating.
Once open, Lazy Moon Maitland’s hours will be 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 11 a.m. to midnight Friday and Saturday.
Dancing Yeti, a restaurant specializing in Nepalese and Indian cuisine, will open somewhere in the city. Not much is being revealed about the eatery other than it will open “soon,” so follow them on Instagram @dancingyetiorlando for updates … Tom’s Watch Bar, the 11,000-square-foot, boob-tube-heavy behemoth by Smashburger founder Tom Ryan, will open “mid-May” on the top floor of the Hollywood Plaza Garage entertainment complex at 8050 International Drive. Tom’s will feature 150-plus hi-res screens, 360-degree views of Orlando from its rooftop, virtual golf bays and a menu of elevated (see what I did there?) bar food …
Look for Kelly’s Homemade Ice Cream to open in the old 407 Gelato space at 120 Independence Lane inside Maitland City Centre in late May … Grazie Modern Italian Kitchen, the new concept by Nazih Sebaali (Cafe Annie, Meza Mediterranean Grill) will open in early May in the old Bem Bom space at 3101 Corrine Drive in Audubon Park. Expect a menu of “Italian classics with a modern touch” … Brazilian steakhouse Divina Carne will open May 17 in the 8,000-square-foot TGI Fridays space at 6424 Carrier Drive near I-Drive … Mango Fresh, the Latin-inspired juice, sandwich and salad bar, has opened a location downtown at 361 N. Rosalind Ave. next to the Drake. They also offer a mango biche made from mango noodles and mango chunks with a host of toppings like Chamoy, Tajín, condensed milk, salt, vinegar, chocolate drizzle and more …
Quantum Leap Winery will vacate its space on Wilfred Drive in Mills 50 at the end of the month after 12 years in operation. They’re still finalizing plans for a long-term home, but will move into a “nearby interim location,” which they’ll announce next week … Tijuana Flats, the Tex-Mex chain founded by Brian Wheeler back in 1995, was acquired by new ownership group Flatheads, LLC, who subsequently closed 11 of its 65 company-owned locations, including the original Tijuana Flats at 7608 University Blvd. near Goldenrod Road, and filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.
Get your baklava fix at the newly-opened Blue Amphora
The Kanpai of Tokyo space that sat vacant for years at 6687 S. Kirkman Road will soon get a new tenant in the revitalized Olinda Center. Sushi Yama, serving all-you-can-eat sushi and hibachi as well as other Japanese dishes like udon and soba noodles, will open April 15. The new address is 6748 Grand National Drive.
Los Tres Golpes, a NYC-style Dominican concept offerings such dishes as chimi beef smash tacos, Dominican pizzas, and empanadas stuffed with fried cheese, fried salami and eggs, has moved into the old Flex Eats/Bagel World space at 741 N. Magnolia Ave.
Colorado-based breakfast joint Snooze, an A.M. Eatery, serving everything from pineapple upside-down pancakes to habañero pork belly breakfast fried rice, will open in the old Zoe’s Kitchen space at 7341 W. Sand Lake Road in Dr. Phillips. An opening date hasn’t been announced.
Blue Amphora, a baklava shop by Selin Akkaya, who hails from Istanbul, has opened at the Shoppes of Goldenrod at 1461 N. Goldenrod Road. Akkaya makes kunefe, borek, panini and cakes as well as a variety of baklava. Turkish coffees, teas and smoothies are also offered.
Massachusetts-based pizza chain PieZoni’s has opened its first Central Florida location at 11895 S. Apopka Vineland Road. The joint incorporates intriguing toppings into its pizza offerings, like the bacon double cheeseburger pizza and grilled chicken alfredo pizza.
1881 Dubai Restaurant, the Uzbek/Turkish restaurant in Kissimmee and subject of last week’s positive review, has, evidently, been (18)86ed, albeit “temporarily,” according to representatives of the restaurant. No word on when they’ll reopen.
Garp & Fuss, the Winter Park resto offering everything from simple pub grub to more sophisticated plates, has closed after six years inside the fetching space at 348 N. Park Ave.
A love letter to Mexican cuisine, Ceiba is now serving modern takes on authentic Mexican flavors in — or rather, atop — Orlando.
Now open on the Conrad Orlando’s seventh-floor rooftop, Ceiba is led by chef Stephen Ullrich and aims to reflect a “contemporary expression of Mexican cooking and pays homage to curated ingredients that tell the story of the country’s treasured dishes and artisan purveyors,” a release reads.
The restaurant’s decor highlights sunset tones, bronze and gold accents, jungle leaves, iguana statues and even a terrarium. Wrap-around windows offer views of the Evermore Bay and nightly fireworks shows from nearby Orlando theme parks.
Guests can start off with botanas, or snacks, like the Oaxcan-inspired tetela de tinga with chipotle braised chicken, corn masa and mole rojo. Main dishes include the chuleta de cerdo “Poc Chuc,” a traditional Mayan marinated pork chop. With tortillas made in-house daily, Ceiba offers a variety of taco dishes, including even a passion fruit jelly dessert taco.
Ceiba’s drink menu highlights agave-based spirits with more than 100 varieties available for sampling in flights or in classic cocktails. Those looking for drinks with non-agave spirits can browse the “Dust Cutter” menu featuring drinks made with whiskey, bourbon and scotch. Zero-proof drink options are also available.
The restaurant offers both indoor and outdoor seating, as well as private rooms for up to 30 people.
Ceiba is open Wednesday through Sunday from 5 to 10 p.m. at 1500 Eastbeach Way, near the border of the Walt Disney World Resort. Reservations are available through OpenTable and by phone at 407-387-2000.
Local restaurant magnates the Tung brothers (Johnny and Jimmy) will transform Mills 50’s long-lived Tien Hung Market into Mills Market in three phases. Phase 1 was the opening of udon noodle house Zaru. Phase 2 will see a Japanese whiskey bar and some micro-eateries open by the end of the year. Phase 3 will see retail vendors, additional food components (like Obon Chocolatier) and a chef incubation program set up inside the market by the end of 2025 …
The Café, described as an “art-filled crêperie and pâtisserie by day and a wine and dessert bar by night,” has opened inside the Alfond Inn in Winter Park. Coffee and pastries will be served daily from 6 a.m. to 2 p.m. and wine and dessert from 3 to 11 p.m. …
Look for local Detroit-style pizza chain SoDough Square to open a third location in the same plaza as Valkyrie Doughnuts at 12226 Corporate Blvd. near UCF this week …
Mid-Drive Dive, the midcentury-inspired restaurant and bar from longtime East End Market tenants Matt Hinckley (Hinckley’s Fancy Meats) and Jacob Zepf (The Neighbors, Freehand Goods), will begin serving its “elevated American classics” and craft cocktails Friday, March 1, in the old Graffiti Junktion space at 2401 Edgewater Drive in College Park …
Over in SoDo, Thai Spoon will take over the Pho & Roll (previously Pho Curry Ford — say it fast) building at 3334 Curry Ford Road. An opening date hasn’t been announced … In Belle Isle, Thunya Thai has opened in the old Chai Thai space at 5174 S. Conway Road.
